Generations and Gender Programme

UNITED NATIONS

Population Activities Unit

ECONOMIC COMISSION FOR EUROPE

Generations and Gender ProgrammeInnovative Way of Advancing Knowledge for Policy-Making

Andres Vikat

IISP 4th Annual Scientific Conference, Moscow, 8-9 Dec 2005

Andres Vikat - IISP Conference, Moscow, 8-9 Dec 2005 2

Demographic Context in Europe

• Below replacement fertility and low mortality population ageing and decline

• Changes in reproduction and cohabitation patterns changes in family structure

• Consequence:Challenges to social and economic policies, including family policies


Need for policy-relevant knowledge

• Governments and scientists know of changes in families and family relationships

• Governments and scientists aware of the lack of solid knowledge of causes of the changes

• Advances in knowledge essential for informed formulation of coordinated and systematic policies


UNECE Tradition: Surveys• Comparative Fertility Surveys (CFS);

1966-71; 12 countries (4 in CEE)

• World Fertility Survey (WFS); 1975-81; 18 countries (6 in CEE)

• Fertility and Family Surveys (FFS); 1988-99; 23 UNECE countries & New Zealand (8 in CEE)


UNECE Tradition:Policy Discussion

• Geneva 1993:European Population Conference

• Budapest 1998:Regional Population Meeting

• Geneva 2004:European Population Forum


Fertility and Family Surveys - FFS

• Data 10 or more years old, do not enable the analysis of the effect of societal transition

• There is a need for a new round of comparative surveys Generations and Gender Programme (GGP)

• Many important questions cannot be addressed using retrospective data only


Why GGP?• To understand

– the relationship between child-bearing and family life on the one hand,and social, economic, political and ideational change on the other

– inter-generational relationships– gender relationships

• … in order to enable informed formulation of policies


GGP – a Unique Programme• Currently the only international

programme focusing on the analysis of population dynamics and its causes


Key Features of the GGP

• Prospective view: Panel design - crucial novelty compared to FFS

• Multidisciplinarity: demography, sociology, economics, psychology, political science

• Comparability: aiming at more rigorous adherence to common tools and content

• Context-sensitivity: contextual database• Generations: Addressing the second half of the life course,

facets of ageing• Gender: access to education and employment, autonomy,

division of roles;sample of both sexes, couple perspective, response items


• Panel• Nationally representative sample of 18-

79 year-old men and women• One respondent interviewed in a

household

Survey Design - Main Features


Panel Design Makes It Possible …

• to analyze relationships between demographic behaviour and life domains that can hardly or not at all be measured retrospectively, like subjective dimensions, income

• to analyze how demographic behaviour shapes value orientations and attitudes, influences well-being, intergenerational and gender relationships

• to analyze intentions of demographic behaviour, and the circumstances supporting or preventing their realization


Focus of the GGS• Target processes

– Childbearing– Partnership dynamics– Home leaving– Retiring


Main criterion for including explanatory topics

• Theoretically grounded relevance to explaining one or more of the target processes


Two Main Explanatory Domains

• Economic aspects, including subjective assessment of them– Activity– Income– Wealth

New Home Economics, relative income;absolute and relative deprivation

• Values and attitudes Second Demographic Transition


Other Explanatory Domains• Parent-child relationships• Gender relationships• Household composition• Housing• Stepfamilies• Contraception and infertility treatment• Education• Health• Subjective well-being• Social networks and private transfers• Welfare state and public transfers


Organisation of the Questionnaire

• Core:– 13 sections

• 4 optional sub-modules– Nationality & ethnicity– Previous partners– Intentions of breaking up– Housing


Prospective View: Intentions• Full set of questions include:

– Intention– Expected consequences– Important circumstances– Perceived attitudes of relevant others

• Implemented for:– starting to live with a partner; if in a non-residential

partnership, starting to live with the current non-resident partner

– starting to live separately from parents– having a/another child– retiring– breaking up (optional)


Other Intentions• moving• finishing education (if studying)• resuming education (if not studying)• marrying• starting to live together with parents• resuming work after maternity leave, parental leave,

or childcare leave;• taking a job or starting a business (if not working)• changing company or starting a business (employees)• starting a new business or taking a job (self-employed)• give up paid work (those who are working)

Wave 1

Analysis

Retrospective histories

childbearing

partnershipsCHILDHOODCROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS ANALYSIS of INTENTIONS

LIFE COURSE ANALYSIS

Wave 1

Analysis

Retrospective histories

childbearing

partnerships

economic

activity

CHILDHOODCROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS ANALYSIS of INTENTIONS CROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS ANALYSIS of INTENTIONS CROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS

childbearing

partnerships

economic

activity

changes from

Wave 1 to 2

childbearing

partnerships

changes from

Wave 2 to 3

economic

activity

LIFE COURSE ANALYSIS

Wave 2 Wave 3

…


Examples of Analyses after Wave 1

• Intentions as the dependent variable• Retrospective childbearing histories as the

dependent variable:Analyses of parity progression, and combined partnership and childbearing histories

• Association of experienced partnership and childbearing history with current value orientations and attitudes and current labor-market status and other current situations

• Various kinds of cross-sectional analyses• The novelty value of GGS unfolds only

after implementing the following panel waves


GGP Outputs• Archives of national harmonised

– micro-data files of GGS– macro-data files of contextual data

• National and cross national reports and studies for policy-makers and scientific community

• National and international meetings• Input for policy discussion


Organisation• Programme level:

– Consortium Board (steering group)– Expert Working Groups

• Questionnaire Development - Wave 1• Questionnaire Development - Wave 2• Administrative Records• Analysis: defining standardised outputs• Sampling, fieldwork guidelines, panel maintenance

– Informal Working Group: representatives from all interested institutions and countries

• National level:– National committees / focal points– focal point in Russia: Independent Institute for

Social Policy


Institutional Setting• Coordination:

– UNECE Population Activities Unit• Consortium:

– Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR)

– Institut national d’études démographiques (INED)– Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute

(NIDI)– Hungarian Central Statistical Office– Statistics Canada– Department of Social Policy, University of York– Department of Demography, University of Rome

“La Sapienza”

Wave 1Wave 1

Committed, fundraisingCommitted, fundraisingPilot, preparation for Wave 1Pilot, preparation for Wave 1

IWG memberIWG member

May 2004

Wave 1Wave 1

Committed, fundraisingCommitted, fundraisingPilot, preparation for Wave 1Pilot, preparation for Wave 1

IWG memberIWG member

October 2005

Thank you for your attention.

Generations and Gender Programme

Documents

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